Ashes to Ice
by RavenSara84
Summary: Tala gets a surprise, is that really...? And this person is going to help him figure himself out?


The red haired Russia looked at the other in surprise; it looked almost like him, a mirror image of himself; but the only problem was he didn't have a twin, he would have known about it, he was sure he would have, and secondly this person just appeared out of nowhere.

"Speechless Tala?" The mirror image said with a smirk.

Blue hair, ice blue eyes, but the outfit was like Bryan's old one from years ago, fur around the neck and the shoulders, sleeveless, the trousers were combats, baggy and grey, his arms had a slight tribal tattoo, blue in colour; but the hair was in the same style as his own, with two thin bangs falling into his face and the slight points to each side; but the only problem; in fact the main problem that Tala had was that this mirror image had a tail and wolf ears.

"Surely you can tell what your own bit beast looks like?"

The tone was teasing, the eyes gleamed with humor; Tala was speechless just like the other said.

"It's not possible," The red head began, shaking his head in disbelief.

"It _is_ possible," The other said with a knowing nod; "You never lost me, but that battle..."

Tala winced, he remembered that battle; the last one he had with Daichi, which once more ended in a draw. He never could beat that kid; but this time his bit beast was damaged, to such an extent, that he was actually thinking of retiring from the sport rather than risk his bit beast being destroyed.

"You would do anything to help me,"

_That's true, because he would do anything for me, and he did, he was a keeper of all those bit beasts that were stolen when Boris was our coach..._ Tala thought to himself and noticed that the other smirking once more.

"How did this happen, Wolborg?"

"I am using your own energy to remain in this form," The bit beast explained; "I won't stay like this permanently, but I need to heal, and I figured this was the beast way to do it,"

"But, it's not just limited to you being able to do this?"

The wolf looked thoughtful; "I'm not sure, our team can all do the same thing; of course, better not for Seaborg," He grinned and continued; "As far as I know, Dranzer can also change; however I doubt the others can. After all, we were all lab rats, so I can't say for certain,"

Tala sat down on the ripped sofa, his bit beast, Wolborg, was a human; was using his own energy to be a human and to heal himself.

"That battle with Strata Dragoon was intense," Wolborg stated, sitting next to the boy who nodded; "I won't be like this for long, say a human week,"

Tala raised an eyebrow at that; "A _human_ week?"

"Yes, we bit beasts have a different time scale to you humans,"

"How?"

Wolborg grinned; "Ours is slower, you human's move about and are here and gone so quickly; don't you ever wonder why we are handed down the generations?"

"I always thought it was due to your souls..." Tala began and heard a laugh; "What?"

"That we don't age? Or die? We can die, and we do age," He paused for a moment; "Unless you count Dranzer,"

"Wh... Oh, phoenix," Tala answered his own question; his mind just about able to process all the information that his now human bit beast was giving him.

"Boris is no longer on the scene, but you still have something to remember him by," Wolborg touched Tala's forehead, and the other flinched.

"I can't get rid of it, the only people that could undo it all were killed," Tala informed the wolf, who shrugged.

"And that other human... Mr Dickinson wasn't it? He can't help?"

Tala narrowed his violet eyes at his human bit-beast; "I am not going to _ask_ for help. It's not causing me any problems,"

"All right fine," He held his hands up in defeat; "Just watch yourself Tala, if word gets out about you having be changed in such a way... A lot of people will want you,"

Tala closed his eyes; "I know, Wolborg. You think I don't think about that? The fact that I am in a sense just a machine?"

"Part machine, part human," Wolborg corrected him and smirked; "Your more human though, your temper for example,"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That. No computer would lose there temper, because they don't have any," Wolborg now grinned at his master; "If anything, I would say Kai would have been a perfect machine, isn't that what he's always after? Perfection?"

"That was how we were raised, to be perfect,"

"No human, nor bit beast is perfect. Even Dranzer would agree with me on that one,"

"You're not really out to heal yourself are you?" Tala asked, standing to look down on his bit beast who just grinned.

"You caught me," He laughed; "It's fun being human though. But you have doubts about your ability to over throw this kid, I wouldn't worry about it Tala. Like Dragoon and Dranzer battle each other, so must I against Strata Dragoon. We just need to train harder, like we always do," He grew serious; "Forget Boris..."

"How can I? The man who pretty much raised me? Who saved me from hell; if it wasn't for him I'd be dead by now!" Tala was shaking, he hadn't meant to admit so much out-loud, not to anyone, not to Wolborg.

"I know. Don't think I am clueless about your past Tala, but you wouldn't have lived for much longer if Boris was still part of your life, not really,"

"I know..." Tala could barely contain a shudder, his head down, thinking over everything that Boris would have done to him if they had taken over the world; "I wouldn't be human at all..."

"No, you wouldn't," Wolborg agreed; "We wouldn't be having this conversation," He paused for a moment; "But you are here, you and your team, along with Kai... You made it through that storm Tala, if you could make it through that, what's some kid with Strata Dragoon going to be compared to all that?"

Tala just looked at his blue haired reflection, his humanoid bit beast; realising that what he said was right. He had been through worse, he had survived it, along with his team, and that would, should, make him stronger. He just never applied it fully to his beyblading skills.

"You're right," He said with a sigh; "I've been holding back... I've been... Scared..."

"Everyone gets scared," Wolborg admitted; "If animals get scared why shouldn't humans? You're not a machine, you are allowed to feel such things,"

"I guess,"

"You'll never be able to get rid of everything he taught you, because some of it is true, however the untruths... You can figure them out on your own,"

Tala closed his eyes for a moment, thinking of his mother, of the woman who had run away in fear of her husband, but leaving behind her only child.

He couldn't begin to imagine what he would have been like if things had been different, if his mother had taken him with her, or if his father had managed to keep his job... But Wolborg was right, he had to let go of everything, get rid of the untruths and live.

In a sense he was going to rise out of the ashes, just like a phoenix.


End file.
